The Association for Consultancy and Engineering (ACE) is urging the government to deliver on off-site manufacturing pledge, including for repeatable social infrastructure to be delivered using a platform/off-site approach
ACE represents companies that design, deliver and manage national infrastructure and built environment. Its latest instalment Project Speed explores how to make this “better, greener and faster”.
The briefing argues that in order to reap the benefits of off-site, it must be rolled out on a greater scale.
ACE is now urging for government procurement to be leveraged to drive wider adoption.
Government commitments on off-site
Its previous off-site manufacturing pledge resulted in the Department for Education procuring 22 major off-site contracts, but many other public bodies are lagging with the remaining departments procuring only one between them.
Guto Davies, head of policy at ACE, made the following comments on the release of Project Speed & off-site manufacturing:
“Government commitments on off-site need to be realised if we are to see off-site fulfilling its undoubted potential for better, greener and faster delivery in the built environment.
“Ambitions around levelling-up, Net Zero and in the more immediate-term around post-pandemic recovery, could all be boosted thanks to a wider adoption of offsite which not only has the potential to unlock social value, but offers the possibility for swift delivery.
“Of course, industry has an important role to play too, primarily as a champion for off-site and the opportunities it unlocks, to help overcome long-standing and out-dated misconceptions around the approach.”
Further recommendations
Other recommendations for the off-site manufacturing pledge include:
- ensure wider compliance with the Construction Playbook and Value Toolkit
- provide more detail on off-site projects within the National Infrastructure and Construction Pipeline
- fund training and qualifications for off-site construction skills
- industry must advocate for benefits of off-site
- industry should embrace collaborative delivery models to realise off-site opportunities
- adopt a more standardised approach to pre-manufactured components
